Cord Blood

MrsClark8109

My DH and I were debating  banking or donating cordblood, butlwere told that we were excluded from being able to donate as they dont accept donations from multiple births.

Does anyone know why that is? Can we still bank or do they not do that with   multiples either?

E&RMommy

Public bank near me (MD Anderson Cancer Center) will not accept donations for multiples.  I asked why and here is what I was told.  Their cords are typically smaller and thus rarely ever yield enough volume, and you can't say for certain which blood came from which baby.

As someone who collects cord blood on every single delivery, I've never ever had an issue knowing which cord is which because we put two clamps on baby B, three clamps on C, etc.  But I do believe the volume aspect.  So many of the singleton donations don't pass because the volume is low.

For us, this confirmed why it was a waste to do private storage.  My kids (who are fraternal) will always be available to donate for their sibling.  If they were ID, their blood couldn't be used on each other anyways. 

HTH.   

monkski

I was told that we couldn't donate because there was too high a risk of cross contamination of the blood in the chaos of the delivery room which could result in graft vs. host in it's recipient which could be deadly. we could've banked it, but chose not to.

anakah

We banked our babies cord blood with CBR.  They called after receipt and processing of the blood and said the volume collected was more than what is usually collected from singleton babies.  If there was not enough volume they would've let us know it wasn't a viable collection and we would have only been charged for the shipping.  I guess it depends on each individual whether there is enough volume to bank.  If you have questions, call them up and ask.  They were really helpful in answering all my questions and clarifying any misconceptions.

togagirl

We banked but only because my mom worked at a cord blood banking facility and she got a great discount for family members.  We did not have a problem banking however I had wanted to bank both the cord and placenta but the boys placentas had grown together and so our doctor couldn't collect that.  It is the OB that collects it for the kit so I would ask what their policy is at your next apt.

TheBachelorette

We banked with CBR.  We were told before we banked that there could be concerns about enough cells in the cord blook since they were twins.  However, when they called to tell us the number of cells they were able to bank, we learned that they were able to bank double the minimum number for both.  We are glad we did it and got a great discount.  If you are interested in more information, let me know.  I can put you in touch with the woman who helped us.  She was very helpful!

AmericordRegistry

Hello !  I work for Americord Registry, a cord blood bank. Find out how you can save up to ten times more stem cells as compared to cord blood alone. See www.cordadvantage.com